Adaptive Sports and Physical Activities for Special Needs Children

To begin the new year on The Coffee Klatch Tweet Chat, Pierrette d’Entremont’s topic was : “ Adaptive sports and adaptive physical acitvities for the special needs child. My post today will bring out the benefits of physical activity for a special needs child and what is available to make this happen.

Going in the Tweet Chat session, I was certain it would prove how disadvantaged rural Special Needs families were in regards to adaptive sports and physical activity. This is still true in many areas especially with sport teams because the Special Needs community and the support and funding are not there in numbers great enough to make it work. But rural areas have wide open spaces offering ample orpportunities for families to enjoy walks, bike rides, horse back riding and lots of unstructured physical activities. 

Surprisingly what IT technology has done to social communication it has also opened up a whole new realm of possibilities for helping your Special Needs child to exercise right in your home. Furthermore, these new, interactive electronic games/activities can be played with more than one player helping foster social skills.

If families find it too expensive to have these games in their homes, schools and community-based fitness centers and programs, like public gyms or local YMCA’s, already have Wii games and exercise modules in place for the use of their members/students. There are also other such games available and new ones coming out all the time.

My Child Does Not Like Sports or Any Physical Activity

So you say no form of sports or physical exercises interest your child...promote other activities that involve moving/movements that will almost have the same end results. These come to mind and they are great for all the family and some are relatively not expensive. Can you add others in the comment box?

* Collecting rocks, leaves, flowers, insects…

*Photographing the objects others would collect or different balconies, unique door knockers, various signs, windows, roofs, birds…

*Gardening...flowers, herbs, vegetables, fruit trees, berry bushes,  small green house...

 *Watching birds, squirrels, bugs, frogs….

*Playing catch with a dog, throwing a ball back and forth with a friend.

* Sitting on huge balls and keeping your balance.

*Learning to juggle, stacking cups, arm wrestling...

*Flying kites, making huge soap bubbles...

*Using hula hoops, gymnastic ribbons, dancing,

*Skipping ropes, hop scotch games, playing hide and seek

*Bowling, table tennis, swimming pool games

*Enjoying a playground, playing in your back yard on swings, slides...

Where to Start?

Do it right and have peace of mind. Check with your family doctor, have your child evaluated and find out what sports/physical activity would be suitable for him or her. Be sure you're aware of any risks your child faces, get familiar with the proper safety precautions needed and familiarize yourself with any equipment needed. Almost any kind of disability can be accommodated with adaptive exercise/sport equipment or certain technique adjustments.

Benefits of Physical Activity for Special Needs Children

All individuals benefit from regular physical activity and special needs children especially. We could all gain from these physical, mental and social benefits of being active.

*See improvements in muscle strength, coordination, and flexibility.

* Improve exercise endurance, cardiovascular efficiency, and possibly increased life expectancy.

*Experience better balance, motor skills and body awareness.

*Will show improvement in behavior, academics, self-confidence and building friendships.

* Will have positive changes in their health, quality of life and boost to their self-esteem.

* Gets to experiences a sense of accomplishment and possibly the taste of winning.

*Experience increases in attention span, on-task behavior, and level of correct responding.

*Will increase appetite and improve quality of sleep.

*Will see a decrease in secondary health complications like obesity, high blood pressure, low HDL ("good") cholesterol and diabetes.

*Will find an outlet for their physical energy, will help them cope with stress, anxiety and depression.

Physical Education Programs Available in Schools for SN Kids

Children with Special Needs are children first with the same needs and desires as their peers. The difference is that SN kids need adaptations and extra support.

In the United States to support their ability to learn in school, three Federal laws apply to children with special needs:
• The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) (1975)
• Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
• The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) (1990).

PE Central site states: “Special physical education/Adapted Physical Education (APE) is a federally mandated component of special education services [U.S.C.A. 1402 (25)] and ensures that physical education is provided to the student with a disability as part of the child's special education services.” Physical education involves physical fitness, motor fitness, fundamental motor skills and patterns, aquatics skills, dance skills, individual, group games, and sports (including lifetime sports).

 The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Public Law 108-466 (2004), states that physical education is a required service for children and youth between the ages of 3-21 who qualify for special education services because of a specific disability or developmental delay. A personally designed program will be outlined in the child's Individual Education Program/Plan (IEP).

Under US federal law, SN kids are entitled to participate in organized sports, physical education and recreational programs unless their presence puts them or someone else in danger. Many cities and towns now offer adaptive recreation classes and sports such as basketball, baseball, soccer, softball, swimming, bowling, and tennis…SN kids can enroll in summer camps, Scout groups, dance groups, yoga classes...which  now cater to all groups of youngsters.

Whether your special needs child has a visible disability, like Cerebral Palsy or Down Syndrome, or an 'invisible' disability like Autism or Asperger’s, chances are you're constantly advocating for doors to open to a better life. A fit child has the odds stacked in his favor for a better life. Also physical activity is important because usually inactive children are likely to become inactive adults. Parents can be role models for an active lifestyle. Lead by example, make it a family affair and best of all have fun!

How do you make sure your Special Needs child gets his required daily amount of physical exercise?

Related Posts:
Benefits of Physical Activity for Children
My Child Does Not Like Any Sport or Any Physical Activity ~ Now What?
Girls Lack of Physical Activity Begins With the Way They Dress
Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth

Carol Gray’s New Social Story Book

Healing Thresholds Autism eBrief: Volume: 4, Issue: 15 April 13, 2010 explained:
 Social Stories are teaching tools to develop social skills and to prepare the child who finds various new settings difficult or confusing. A social story is a simple description of an everyday social situation, written from a child's perspective. Social stories may help a child prepare for upcoming changes in routine, de-mystify social interactions, and relate academic skills to real-life experience.

Available now is a  New Social Story Book, Updated 10th Anniversary Edition Feb 2010. It is a great new full-color resource by Carol Gray, for only $34.95.

Gray’s new book includes 150 favourite Social Stories(TM), a CD to enable you to revise and print the Stories for your audience and additional information about writing your own Social Stories(TM)!

Gray’s best-selling book offers the ready-to-use stories that parents and educators have depended on for years, but now features over 25 additional Social Stories.

Gray’s strategically written stories explain social situations in a way children with autism understand, while teaching the social skills children need to be successful at home, at school, and in the community.

Carol Gray, an internationally-recognized author and presenter, first defined Social Stories™ in 1991. That year, Carol developed Social Stories™ and Comic Strip Conversations strategies that are used worldwide with children, adolescents, and adults with autism spectrum disorders (ASD).


Now Carol Gray is the Director of The Gray Center for Social Learning and Understanding in Grand Rapids, Michigan.


Carol Gray has completed over 22 years of employment with Jenison Public Schools in Jenison, Michigan, initially as a teacher with students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and in recent years as a consultant to students with ASD in inclusive educational programs


We have a Nova Scotia Social Stories expert.  Jean Nicol, before retirement was an Early Interventionist at Pictou County Early Intervention and Autism Consultant in Pictou County at Chignecto Central Regional School B. Jean Nicol has invented and is marketing The Eating Game which will be the topic of our next post. But for today, this is what Jean Nicol wrote as a comment on our post about Social Stories . We are very grateful to Jean Nicol for taking the time to share her knowledge:


"I have written hundreds of social stories for kids with ASD, SPD, Down Syndrome, ADHD/ADD, Behaviour Disorders, Communication Disorders. I have used them for teaching new social skills, for clarifying expectations in troublesome social situations, for transitioning ~ especially when a change to a routine is imminent and would otherwise be an unprepared for surprise!


I can't remember any that weren't helpful and/or very successful. I have incorporated graphics, photos, maps, real objects, cassette tapes, video, recordable photo albums, large books, small books and even business cards for teens. The possibilities are endless.


The power is that the message is very personal, meaningful and can be delivered by various school staff, parents, siblings, caregivers and therapists all working together, all delivering exactly the same message every time. Kids who read them themselves receive the same message every time. I don't know of another way to accomplish all of this."


In this Blog at  http://kidcompanions.blogspot.com/2010/03/mar-23-sensory-tip.html , I explained and gave an example of a Social Story.


Are Social Stories helping your child?